Reviews by hdelavega:

Pours a clear burnt orange color with a finger of white head. The nose is dominated by spices, cinnamon, all spice, nutmeg, brown sugar. I also get a little roasted pumkin and a gram cracker like aroma, there is also some oak in there but not much. The flavor is pretty much a mild version of pumking. Follows the nose almost to the point, with the exception of the oak which is almost unnoticeable. Medium body, medium carbonation. I like pumking, I liked oaked pumking, but was not impressed. I was looking forward to experiencing how the oak would blend with the beer but it was almost nonexistent.

More User Reviews:

Pours clear orange hued amber, clear, with a minor off white head and next to no lacing.

Some alcohol and pumpkin pie spicing in the nose

Full on pumpkin thingy goin on here. Spice, pumpkin flavor, some smoke, and woody notes to add to the complexity. On the hot side with alcohol burning a bit. Holiday dessert beer, perfect as a thanksgiving dinner night capper.

A - Pour is orange with a cream colored foam on top. Slight lacing, and just a bit cloudy. Some carbonation moving about.

S - Smell is very refined. Pumpkin spices are there and the oak aged gives it a bit more of a vanilla and wood smell.

T - The added complexity takes a little from this. The creamy pumpkin flavor is replaced with a mellower flavor that has an earthy finish. This still a really good flavor, but as someone who loved the regular pumking this was unexpected.

M - Very mellow, slightly carbonated, and the age gives it a lingering feel. Lighter than the original, and a slight spicy bite in the finish

O - It stands on its own as a solid pumpkin ale. I think I like Pumking a bit more. The oak aged variety is better suited to those who like a toned down blast of spice and more complexity in the style.

First off, Pumking is one of my favorite beers. When I heard that they were going to be oak aging it, I thought "COOL!". After waiting awhile for it, I began questioning the rationale for doing so. Why mess with something that doesn't need messing with. That being said, this beer is great. The original pumking taste, smell and feel are all there....with just a tad bit of "more". The oak aging gives it a nice little bite and a smokiness that did not exist before. ST did a nice job here. I filled up a growler for this weekends holiday party. Happy holidays to ME!

Pumking is one of my all-time favorite beers, and a standard around my house during the autumn months. I rushed to TJ's in Paoli (the best beer bar ever, by the way) to try this oak aged version, and couldn't have left more disappointed. Pumking is a very strongly flavored beer - very sweet, with a lot of pumpkin pie flavors and a nice hot alcohol burn that helps tie the entire experience together. I don't know how long this version spent on oak, but it tastes as if it was only a month or two. The beer comes out tasting just about the same as Pumking (keep in mind that with this review, I'm grading on a curve), with the oak only imparting a medicinal quality that detracts from the overall experience. Pumking already has a vanilla marshmallow creme character, so I can't really detect any more vanilla from the oak - and there's not any woodsiness to speak of. What there is is a sap-like medicinal quality to the sip, especially in the aftertaste - a danger of aging beer or cooking food on virgin oak - that detracts from the lovely, pie-like experience of drinking this beer and just makes it a bit of a chore to drink.

Pumking has a ton of flavor - perhaps Southern Tier could keep that in mind next time they attempt this. It could use some barrel aging that's able to stand up to that flavor - either a long long time in virgin oak, or some time in something like bourbon or rum barrels, would be a smarter move.

Pours a glowing orange with a creamy white head. Typically amazing Pumking aromas of graham cracker, pumpkin, caramel, and cinnamon with just a tiny bit of oak. Taste is more of the same from Pumking (one of my favorite Pumpkin Ales) : graham cracker, butter, cinnamon, hazelnuts, and pumpkin. Not getting a ton of oak in this, it basically tastes like...regular Pumking. Not a bad thing, but a bit disappointing. Medium-bodied, with a creamy mouthfeel and good carbonation. A bit underwhelming overall. I really wanted to like this more then the regular version, but it fell a bit flat.

Smells exactly like Pumking- the usual mix of pumpkin pie spices, with a good amount of vanilla.

Also tastes basically exactly like Pumking. Would like to see more from the oak-aging. The oak-aging brings a slight oakiness, plus a bit more substantial vanilla flavor. A bit less sweet than the original.

Medium bodied, creamy mouthfeel. Crisp and well carbonated.

A good beer, but not all that different from regular Pumking. Regular Pumking is great, though, so I like this one.

A: The beer is crystal clear yellowish amber in color. It poured with a bit of lacing on the surface and a thin ring of bubbles around the edge of the glass.S: There are moderately strong aromas of pumpkins and pumpkin spices in the nose.T: The taste has flavors of pumpkin and spices and is slightly sweet. The barrel aging adds notes of vanilla.M: It feels medium-bodied and slightly thick on the palate with a moderate amount of carbonation.O: This beer goes down rather easily because the alcohol is well masked from the taste. It has enough pumpkin flavors and doesn’t go over the top with the spices.